Getting started - Meetings

Young men have the right to receive visits from their legal representatives, including solicitors and barristers. 

Legal visits are not subject to the same limitations as social visits and can be arranged as needed to ensure the young man has access to legal advice and representation. 

Legal visits are private and confidential, meaning that prison staff cannot monitor conversations between inmates and their legal representatives.

These visits will be organised by a representative of Key4Life who will also attend the meeting.

During the 3-way meeting, the young man and the mentor will agree the level of support needed. There are no hard rules and, importantly, it will be led/determined by the young man.

It could vary or be a mix of weekly check-in 5-minute phone calls, fortnightly half hour Skype session and monthly meetups.

Meetings and calls may need to be more frequent initially in order to ensure systems are in place and working. 

Meet-ups can regularly include jointly agreed practical activities that relate to goals/action steps.

Activities can vary from cooking at home to walking, bowling or simply a coffee in a café during which mentors can: 

• Prompt conversation around beliefs, values, needs and who they want to be 
• Encourage and increase self-confidence and positivity 
• Strengthen the relationship and allow mutual learning through sharing an experience 

Commitment is key: Mentors will need to be able to commit to mentoring a young man for up to 12 months post release (6 months for “At Risk” programme). Availability, reliability and consistency are also key to good mentoring relationships.